Infragilis - Unbreakable
by capshawfan1981
Summary: Callie is a surgeon.. Arizona a scrub nurse. They are both seeing other people, but the sparks are something that neither can deny. Will they be able to figure out a way to be together, or are they just not mean to be? Climb aboard and enjoy the ride with me. Some fluff, angst, romance.. a little of everything. CALZONA in the end of course ;)
1. Chapter 1

_Infragilis – Unbreakable _

A/N 1: I do not own any of the characters from Greys anatomy. I simply use the characters to write my own versions of the show, simply for entertainment and pleasure. All rights to these amazing, imaginary people that we all have grown to love belong to the amazingly talented Shonda Rhimes.

_A bad storm can tear down an oak tree, but the slender reed that bends will not break. Infragilis is a latin word that means "unbreakable, strong, tender". Anyone can experience love. You love a certain song. You love a type of movie. You love your favorite flavor of ice cream. But only the lucky… the truly lucky few experience true love. If you are among the small group that actually get to enjoy the incredible feeling, then consider yourself blessed. Because love is the greatest feeling in the entire world. It is what makes life worth living… _

CHAPTER 1

It was 6am on a Sunday morning, and Callie Torres was laying awake in her bed. She was upset for 3 reasons. One, she had worked 2 weeks straight without a day off, and even on the days that she wasn't supposed to be to work until later in the morning, she had been called in for one emergency or another almost each and every time. So this was the first day she had been able to sleep in but yet here she was. Wide awake, and alone in her bed. Which led her to the second reason she was upset. She was in her bed… alone. Which wouldn't be a big deal if she were single, but she wasn't single. She had been dating Ashley for a few months now, and the two had been spending more nights together than apart as of late. Also leading to reason number three of her anger. She was angry that she had allowed herself to become one of 'those' girls. The type that gets upset when their girlfriend doesn't show up as planned. The type that sends a dozen text messages asking where said girlfriend was and growing angrier with every unanswered text.

She lay there in her bed, looking at the alarm clock flashing as each minute passed. Finally, she pulled the covers back and let her feet touch the floor before stretching. She figured that considering the fact that she was already wide awake she figured she would make herself a nice breakfast. Something she rarely did considering she loved to sleep until the very last minute and then it was a mad dash out the door with a to go cup of coffee and a bagel if she actually had time to pick them up from the grocery store.

Callie pulled out the all the ingredients for her favorite omelets. She set her ipod on the dock Mark bought her for Christmas and hit play on her playlist. She was in the middle of flipping an omelet and belting out the lyrics to the song 'Airplanes' by B.O.B. when the front door of her apartment flew open, and a very tired looking Cristina Yang walked in, dropping her bag on the floor.

"Oh hey Cris." Callie said over her shoulder to her roommate, before pouring another omelet mixture into the pan. "You hungry? I'm making omelets."

"I am too tired to wait for them to cook. There was a group of kids that came in last night after prom gone bad. One of them thought they were sober enough to drive home, and ended up playing chicken with a city bus, and lost. One came in with a piece of metal sticking through her chest, and out her back. We were in the OR for 9 hours, and ended up losing her after only 45 minutes in post op." The Asian woman said before grabbing the box of cereal from the cabinet, followed by a bottle of water from the refrigerator. "I am going to crash before they page me for something else." And just like that, she was gone.

Callie silently debated with herself before walking over to Cristinas door and knocking. A muffled 'what' came from the other side and Callie poked her head inside.

"Hey, sorry to bother you, but um.. I was uhh, just wondering if you happened to have seen Ashley at the hospital last night?" Callie asked, trying her very best to not seem like some desperate teenager.

"No." is all the woman said from underneath her pillow.

"No? I mean, maybe she was busy with another person while you were—" Callie said before Cristina sat up, and interrupted Callie.

"Enough with the girl crap. I am not fluent in girl talk, so let me get down to the facts because I need sleep, and that would require you to get out. I saw your girlfriend around 730, but that was the in the lobby. She was headed out with a group of the other first years. And before you even ask me, No I don't know who she left with. I didn't recognize some of the others that were with the fish, but whatever. " Cristina said, before pulling the blanket back over her face and going back to sleep.

Callie walked into the living room. She was even angrier now that her friend had confirmed that her girlfriend was indeed NOT working. Which meant that not contacting Callie was her own choice. Unless there was some incredibly good explanation for this, Callie was certain she was done with this so called relationship. She went back into the kitchen and finished making her breakfast and sat alone at the table reading the paper before showering. She didn't have to work today, so she planned on doing some cleaning around the apartment, God knows Cristina was not any help in that department, and then doing all of her errands that she seldom had time for. She was determined to make this a productive day, and not even thoughts of her girlfriend were going to interfere with that.

She was dusting her shelves when a soft knock on her door caught her off guard. She walked over and looked through the peep hole and sighed when she saw that it was not who she had been hoping for. Instead it was her best friend, Mark Sloan.

"Hey Mark. What's up?" Callie asked, leaning against the door frame.

"Morning Cal. I was just stopping by to see if you and Ashley were going to go to Derek's birthday party tonight. Meredith asked me to stop by and get a head count, for the catering company."

"Oh. I don't know. I was really wanting to just get my stuff done today, kind of rest and catch up on my shows I have had recorded on my DVR. And honestly, I have no idea if Ashley will be there. I haven't spoken to her since yesterday." Callie said, running her fingers through her hair.

"What happened? I thought she was here practically every night. Did something happen?" Mark asked.

"Not that I know of. But then again, I am pretty lost right now. The last thing she told me yesterday was that she got off at 7, and then she was going to come by. But when I woke up this morning, she was nowhere to be found. I tried calling her, texting her but nothing."

"I'm sure there's a good explanation. But even if she doesn't go, you should. Everyone is going to be there. And I know for a fact there are a couple of really hot nurses going to be there. And if you are single… you could always—" Mark began, but Callie slapped his arm, stopping him.

"Don't even. If things with Ashley and I are done, then I have no intentions of hooking up or seeing anyone for a long, long time. After Erica, it took me long enough to give Ashley a chance. I certainly have no interest in going back down the first date street anytime soon."

"So will you come? Meredith really wants as many of us that can make it to go. It's important to her, she said she has something really important to announce tonight. So, be ready. Lexie and I will stop by and pick you up and you can ride with us. Unless you and your girl kiss and make up, then just text me and we will meet you there." Mark said with a wink.

"I'll be ready at 7. See you later Mark." Callie said rolling her eyes and reaching for her purse. If she was going to go to this party, she needed to get her errands over with now. Glancing at her cell phone once more and not seeing anything from her girlfriend, she threw it in the bottom of her purse, and decided that she was not going to keep checking it.

After her bills had been paid, and she got the pedicure she had been desperately needing, she made a fast decision to stop off at a little bakery that she didn't get to visit near as often as she would like. She walked inside and looked around. Spotting the familiar sight of pink scrubs, she noticed that some of the surgical nurses were huddled around a table, lost in conversation that Callie was certain had to do with some if not all of the surgeons from work. The nurses were great at their jobs, and the doctors wouldn't be able to pull off their jobs without them, but they were infamous for their rumor spreading. There wasn't a thing that happened inside the walls of that hospital that the nurses didn't know about. Her order was quickly ready and Callie turned to leave, stopping short when she almost collided with one of the formerly mentioned nurses.

"Oh, excuse me. I'm so sorry." The blonde said with a huge smile, dimples so adorable that it made Callie's brain go blank.

"Completely my fault. I was too busy looking around instead of looking where I was walking." Callie said, trying her best not to look like a stuttering fool.

"You're Dr. Torres, right? I'm Arizona Robbins. Ped's surgery. I'm pretty new, but I have seen you around the hospital. My girlfriend is on your service actually." Arizona said tilting her head to the side, her hair being tossed over her shoulder. Callie could almost swear that Arizona was flirting with her, but she quickly ignored that idea. All of the nurses were known for flirting with the doctors, and it wasn't the first time it had happened to Callie. But for some reason, this didn't seem the same.

"That's me. It's nice to meet you. But forgive me, I don't know who your girlfriend is. I have several nurses on my service, but I rarely discuss their personal lives." Callie said, giving one of her megawatt smiles to the blonde in return.

"Oh, I'm Jo's girlfriend. Jo Wilson. She's over there. She absolutely loves working on your service. She said that you are the nicest doctor here, so I wanted to introduce myself. I am typically in Ped's, but if I ever get a chance to work with you, I will definitely be happy to do so." Arizona said, laying on her dimpled smile.

"Jo is great. She's a very good nurse. Her notes are always very precise and very much appreciated. If you want on an ortho case, just let me know sometime. I'm sure we can get you in for a surgery." Callie said with a smile.

"Dr. Torres, your order is ready." The lady behind the counter said, tearing Callie's attention away from the blonde.

"Thank you." Callie said to the woman, before turning back to Arizona. "It was really nice meeting you, Arizona. I'm sure we will see each other around the hospital."

"Same here. Have a good day Dr. Torres." Arizona said with a smile before walking back over to the group of nurses she had previously been sitting with.

Although Arizona was sitting next to her girlfriend, she couldn't help but keep her eyes on Callie until she had left her eye sight. Sure, Arizona was happy-ish with Jo. They hadn't been together all that long, but she wasn't blind. She could clearly see that Callie was a beautiful woman. She wasn't sure how to explain it, but something about her made it impossible for Arizona to focus on the conversation that was happening at the table.

"So, they are having a get together tonight at Dr. Sheppard and Dr. Grey's house. Its supposed to be some big, over the top party. All of the doctors are going to be there, and they invited some of us too. We should all totally go. I know I for one, would love to see how they act once they have had a few too many drinks. They all seem so uptight most of the time." Jo said with a laugh.

At the mention of the doctors, Arizona instantly tuned into the conversation. She knew that if she went to said party, her girlfriend would be there. But she couldn't fight the instant urge to see Dr. Torres again, even if it was in a setting full of other people. At least if there were other people there, she knew that there was no way she would do anything stupid. So she looked at it as some sort of protective scenario.

"We could go. I mean, if you want to." Arizona said, trying her best not to seem eager.

"Yes! I'm so in!" Jo said. The other nurses agreeing that they too wanted to attend. "I'm going to text Alex and let him know that we will be going." She added.

"Why do you have DOCTOR Karev's phone number?" Arizona asked, somewhat confused as to why or how her girlfriend had the Attending's phone number. Sure, she knew they were buddy-buddy at work but she didn't know they were _that _close. Close enough to have each other's phone number and 'texting'.

"Oh. He gave it to me incase I had any questions about that tumor patient we had the other day. And he sends the funniest text forwards. I will have to forward them to you when I get them." Jo said, with a sparkle in her eye that didn't go unnoticed by Arizona.

"Huh. That's…. interesting." Arizona said before stuffing a bite of donut into her mouth to avoid saying more than she should. She was going to just blow this sudden jealousy off, especially considering she was all but drooling over Callie not even 5 minutes prior.

Callie walked into her apartment and was quick to finish up her list of 'to-do's' before heading over to her friends house for the party. She debated on asking Mark if Arizona was going to be there, in fear of having him harass her for any and every reason. She knew that Arizona had a girlfriend, but she still wanted to look hotter than usual. She wanted to find something to wear that would knock anyone off the feet. Especially a gorgeous blonde with ocean blue eyes.

After several hours of changing clothes like and obsessively compulsive person, she stepped out of her apartment in a knee length, fitted dress that showed not too much, but enough cleavage to make some jaws drop. Her heels made her sexy and tonight, sexy was exactly what she was looking to achieve. She walked the few feet over to Mark's apartment and knocked on the door. Lexie opened the door and smiled. She had always looked up to Callie. She was an excellent surgeon, and she was an even better friend to her boyfriend. She couldn't count how many times that Callie had been there to listen to both she and Mark when they were trying to work through an argument, and she had saved their relationship countless times.

"Hey Callie. You ready to go? We are going to have some fun tonight, drink tequila, have more fun and then MORE tequila." Mark said, walking into the room and pulling a skin tight black t-shirt over his head.

"I'm ready. For all of the above. Let's go." Callie said with a laugh. Mark was very blunt and never hid his true feelings. Even if it was something that would potentially be of extreme dislike by Callie, he still said what he felt and it proved to be helpful more times than not.

The drive to Meredith and Derek's house was filled with talk about work, and their surgeries. Lexie was an RN as well, but was in her last year of med school becoming a surgeon herself. She had a late start on her school, but with her highly photographic memory she was somewhat breezing through the classes. It didn't hurt that her boyfriend and his best friend, her friend as well, were both two of the country's top ranking surgeons. They helped her study at the drop of a hat, and she didn't take that for granted what so ever.

When they pulled into the driveway at their friend's house, they noticed that there were an excessive amount of vehicles parked outside. When they began walking into the house they could hear the sound of voices and music coming from the back yard. Mark led the two women to the back deck and that's when Callie instantly saw her. The blonde woman who had been invading her thoughts all day. She was sitting on a bench next to Jo, and looking extremely bored. Jo on the other hand seemed to be very entertained considering she seemed to be engrossed with Alex Karev. If Callie hadn't know that Arizona was Jo's significant other, she would assume that Jo and Alex were together.

She tore her attention away from Arizona, and walked over to get a drink from the makeshift bar that had been set up.

"O'Malley, what are you doing back there playing bartender?" She said with a laugh, to one of the first year interns.

"Dr. Sheppard said if I manned the bar, he would let me scrub in on his craniotomy in the morning. So, Dr. Torres, what will it be?" He said with a beaming smile.

"I'll have a beer. Whatever kind you have."

"Make that two." Callie didn't even have to turn around before a smile spread across her face. It was the voice that belonged to the woman who had taken over her every thought.

Turning around, Callie took in Arizona's full appearance, and smiled in approval. She was wearing a deep blue dress that seemed to hug her body in all the right places.

"My eyes are up here, Doctor." Arizona said with a smirk.

"Sorry. I was just uh, looking at your dress. It's very…. Nice." Callie said, blushing at the fact that she had been caught.

"Do you want to sit?" Callie said motioning to one of the empty benches on the deck.

Arizona looked over at her girlfriend who was laughing at something Alex had said, and her hand placed on his arm. She turned back to Callie and found the courage to say "Actually, would you like to go for a walk with me?"

Callie too looked over at Jo and then back to Arizona. "Lead the way."

Callie wasn't sure where this walk was going to take them, but she had a gut feeling that it wasn't just to the end of a sidewalk. No, this was a much different walk than two people take as 'friends'.


	2. Chapter 2

Infragilis - Unbreakable

Chapter 2 –

The sidewalk Derek had made, led them towards a pond with a gazebo that overlooked the lake. It was an incredibly beautiful and romantic setting, and if the situation had been different, Callie would easily take this opportunity to kiss the woman that was next to her. Unfortunately this wasn't that type of situation so she refrained from her desires.

"It's beautiful here." Arizona said softly, pulling Callie out of her daydream. "It's like something you see on the front of a puzzle box. Derek and Meredith definitely have excellent vision and taste. It's amazing here."

"It really is. My parents have a place on the water in Miami, and I always thought it was beautiful. But this? This is what true beauty is." Callie said, staring out over the water, the stars reflecting over it and bouncing across it.

"So you're from Miami? Family?" Arizona said, pushing to find out more about the doctor.

"Uh, yeah. Born and raised. Only left for a while to join the peace corps, and then I went to Harvard before landing here in Seattle. Talk about climate changes. I love Miami, I will always call it home, but I left there for a reason. My parents are there, and my little sister. My parents own some hotels, and—"

"Wait! You're the Torres Hotel's, Torres'?" Arizona said with wide eyes.

"Whoa, whoa. I'm the daughter of the Torres Hotel Torres'. I most definitely didn't want to be in the business, which is why I am a surgeon. But yes, that is my family's business. My sister on the other hand decided that was exactly what she wanted. She is currently training with my father to take over when he retires. So, what about you? Where are you from?"

"I'm from Michigan. My father is a marine, and we moved around more times than I can count, and then when we got there my dad started having heart problems. Even though he is stubborn as a mule, and was ready to re-up but my mother, who had been silent my entire life, finally spoke up. She told my dad that she wasn't going to sit there and make their children watch their father kill himself, so to speak. She told him that if he didn't retire, and take care of his health that she would leave and take me and my brother with her. That seemed to be what it took for him to listen. He retired and they bought the house we had been renting for over 6 years. They have been there ever since then. My older brother, Tim, joined the service a year after high school. He served 8 years, including 2 tours in Iraq before he found out that his long time girlfriend was pregnant and moved back to his contract was up. He's a recruiter now in Lansing. He made me an aunt to my insanely adorable nephew Bryce. He's 4 now. "Here's a picture of him". Arizona said, showing Callie her phone wallpaper.

"He's really cute. I see the blonde hair, blue eyes is really dominant in your family." Callie said with a laugh.

"We get that from our mom. I swear Tim and I could heave been twins."

"So how did you end up in Seattle?" Callie asked.

"It was always one of my top hospital choices. It's one of the top rating hospitals in the country and I wanted to work with the best."

"Yeah, same here. Seattle Grace was my top choices too. I can't imagine working anywhere else. So you and Jo? How long have you two been together?" Callie asked, then instantly felt like she was being too personal. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't ask. You don't have to—"

"No it's fine. Really. We have been together a while. We are just having fun mostly. I mean, she hasn't said anything but I can tell she isn't really looking for anything long term. Hell, I'm not blind. I can clearly see how very interested she is in Alex. Every time we go for drinks with him and some other doctors, I am the one that feels like I am a 3rd wheel on their date."

"Yeah, I kinda noticed their really close. It's not like either of them try to hide it." Callie said, nodding her head.

"Yeah." Is all Arizona said before looking back over the water.

Callie could see that the talk about Alex and Jo had upset the blonde, so she didn't try to fight the urge to comfort her. She took a step towards her and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

"Hey. If Jo doesn't know how luckily she is to have you, then she's an idiot. You are definitely something special. And you deserve to have someone that realizes what they have."

Arizona turned to look at Callie. She could see the way Callie's eyes sparkled in the moonlight, and she felt her body leaning towards hers. Callie licked her lips, and their eyes locked. Just before their lips touched, Callie's phone began to ring and they both jumped apart. Callie jerked her phone from her small purse, and rolled her eyes.

"Yes Mark." She said, mouthing 'sorry' to Arizona. "Ok, I'll be there in 5 minutes." Callie said to Mark. "They are ready to go. Mark got paged in to the hospital, and he's my ride. Want to walk back?"

"Sure." Arizona said, trying to hide her disappointment of missing their kiss.

The two women walked back towards the house in silence. Their hands brushed against the others several times, and both women fought the urge to grab the others hand. It felt like the natural thing to do. But since they were both painfully aware of the fact that Arizona was in a relationship with Jo, and Callie was… well, Callie wasn't sure what she was in at this point. She knew that there was no way she could be 100 percent in the relationship with Ashley, if they were still even together, after the sudden arrival of unexplainable feelings toward the blonde.

Back at the house, they went towards the party, but just before they opened the gate, Callie put her hand on Arizona's arm to stop her.

"I know this is probably inappropriate, but if you ever want to hang out, give me a call." Callie said. Her stomach was doing somersaults inside of her and the smile that she loved to see appeared on the blondes face. She wasn't sure what she would say.

"Well then I am going to need your number." Arizona said softly.

They exchanged numbers and continued towards the gate. But just as they were almost there, they saw two people in the shadows having a very heated make out session.

"Excuse us. Don't stop on our account." Callie said with a laugh, but stopped when she noticed Arizona frozen in her tracks. Quickly Callie noticed exactly who it was that had been making out in the dark, and she turned to face Arizona.

"Jo." She said as the couple jumped apart quickly realizing who had just busted them.

"Arizona… I—" Jo began, but Arizona held up her hand to stop her.

"Jo, it's fine. Really. I can't be mad at you. We both knew that this relationship wasn't going to work. And I am interested in someone else." Arizona said, her eyes moving towards Callie who's jaw was dropped, and then back to Jo.

"I am so sorry." Jo added. Both Callie and Alex stood there in silence. Feeling completely awkward between the two now ex-lovers.

Arizona turned to face Callie and nodded that she was ready to go inside the party. On the other side of the fence, Callie pulled Arizona to the side once more to talk to her in private before meeting Mark.

"Are you alright?" She asked softly.

"I have no right to be upset. I was seconds away from doing the exact same thing right before your phone rang. So that doesn't exactly make me innocent in this."

"Cal! There you are. Ready to go? I have to get to the hospital." Mark said, walking up behind the women.

"Do you need a ride? We could go back to my apartment and get my car. It's no trouble, really." Callie offered.

"I did ride here with Jo. So that would be great, if you are sure you don't mind." Arizona said.

"No problem blondie. Lets go." Mark said, taking Lexie by the hand and leading the way to his car.

The car ride was spent with Mark talking about the plastics case he was working on for some celebrity. Callie saw Arizona staring off into the distance, and took a chance by reaching over and grabbing her by the hand. The blonde looked over to Callie and laced their fingers together with a smile.

Once back at Callie's apartment, Callie and Arizona went towards her apartment, while Mark and Lexie went the other way.

"I just have to grab my keys and then we can head out. Unless you want a glass of wine and talk a little before we go." Callie said with a hopeful tone.

"Wine sounds amazing right about now."

Callie was internally jumping up and down because she wasn't ready to end their night. She really enjoyed the company of the other woman.

"I have red, or white. Which will it be?" Callie asked with her head inside of the refrigerator.

"White please." Arizona said while looking at all of the pictures around the living room. "Is this your parents?" She asked, accepting the glass of wine from Callie.

"Yeah. That's my sister too."

"You look so much like your dad. And your sister, she is totally your mom all over again."

"Look who's talking. You and your brother look like your mom created you both all on her own. But I have to say, they are some really cute jeans." Callie said with a wink.

"Thank you."

Callie was fixing to continue with how beautiful Arizona was, but a knock at the door pulled her out of the pretty pink bubble they had be floating in. "Excuse me." She said, stepping around Arizona to answer the door. Except Callie wasn't prepared for who was on the other side of the blue door. Opening it, the smile on Callie's face fell instantly. She wasn't expecting to see Ashley standing there, and she didn't even have to say a word for Callie to be able to tell that the woman was insanely drunk.

"Calliiiieeee." The woman said with a slur. Her body swaying from the right to the left as she tried to gain her balance. "I have been trying to call you. Well, I was mentally trying. It would have been easier if I could have found my phone—"

"Ashley. Wait." Callie said, trying to cut the rambling woman off before she said more than necessary. Callie stepped in front of her when she noticed that Ashley was walking into the apartment, ignoring Callie and continuing to ramble.

" And I can't prove it, but I'm positive it was that bitch Cassie. She is always… Oh, hello. I wasn't aware of company." Ashley said as she realized that Callie wasn't alone in the apartment. "Robbins, right?" Ashley said, knowing full well exactly who she was. The real question she wanted to ask was why this hot blonde was alone in her girlfriend's apartment.

"Yes." Arizona said, setting her glass of wine down on the coffee table. "I was just leaving."

Callie was instantly disappointed. She really wanted to spend time with Arizona, but she knew that she had to handle the situation with Ashley first. Even if she really wanted to go back in time and ignore the knock on the door.

"Arizona, wait." Callie said, scrambling to come up with a plan to keep Arizona from leaving. Kicking herself for not telling Arizona about Ashley, even if she knew that they were over she hadn't ended it officially and that was something she should have told the blonde. "Let me give you a ride home. Really, I-" Callie offered. She desperately wanted the opportunity to explain the fact that she had every intention of breaking up with Ashley even before tonight's events.

"I'll be fine. Thank you for being there tonight. It was nice to have someone to talk to."

"Let me at least walk you out and wait with you until you get a cab."

Arizona looked over to Ashley who had already passed out on the couch, and back to Callie.

"Ok." Was all she said before they walked towards the elevator and down in silence.

Downstairs Arizona called for a cab and let Callie know that it would only be about 5 minutes.

"Arizona, about Ashley." Callie began an attempt to explain, but Arizona just shook her head.

"It's fine. You don't owe me any explanations."

"No. It's not what you think." Callie said as she saw the cab turn down the street. "Can we… can we get together tomorrow and talk? Maybe over coffee?" Callie asked.

"Sure. Have a good night Callie." Arizona said as she climbed into her cab.

Callie stood there watching the cab drive away until it was completely out of sight. She knew that talking to Ashley tonight would be pointless, so she walked into her apartment and tossed the throw blanket over the passed out woman before heading into her bedroom to shower. Just before she stepped into the shower, she heard her phone play the sound for a text message. Almost sprinting to the phone she ripped it off of her night stand and felt her heart rate increase upon seeing Arizona's name on her screen.

She slid her finger across the screen to open the message.

"How about coffee at 9. Where we met." Arizona asked.

"I will be there." Callie typed quickly. She was very relieved to see that Arizona still wanted to meet. She honestly had expected to never hear from her again. She lay there for over an hour thinking about the conversation she would have to have with Ashley in the morning. And she knew it had to be early in order for her to meet with Arizona. Finally sleep over took the woman and she slept very uneasily. She could only hope that the next morning would go smoothly, because it seemed as though nothing inside of Callie's life ever did.


	3. Chapter 3

IUCH3

The smell of coffee filled the apartment and Callie poured herself a cup before heading into her shower. She woke up this morning with Ashley curled up beside her like she had so many times before, only this time instead of wrapping her arms around Ashley, Callie climbed out of bed and went into the kitchen to start the coffee. She knew that Ashley would wake up with one hell of a hangover, and she needed her to be able to converse in order for Callie to make her feelings clear. She had no room to leave things unsure. She needed to be careful with her words, and try her best to avoid any confusion. She was just as much to blame as Ashley was for their relationship failing, but she knew that acting right now was the best thing. In order to avoid any mistakes that she was certain she would make if she were to stay in this relationship. She wasn't certain what it was about Arizona, but she knew that there was most definitely something about her that drew Callie in the way a piece of watermelon drew honey bees in the summer.

Callie took her time in the shower, hoping to find an awake and moving Ashley. It was a quarter to 8 and she needed to leave by 8:45 in order to meet Arizona for coffee. Once she entered her bedroom, she quickly noticed her bed was empty. She suddenly felt nervous about the talk with Ashley, but she got dressed and made her way towards the kitchen.

"Morning." Ashley mumbled with her face flat on her hands, against the table. Not bothering to look up, she tried to continue. "I'm sorry about everything Callie. I didn't plan on things getting so out of control."

Callie filled her coffee mug once more and took a seat next to her soon to be ex girlfriend.

"Ash. We need to talk." Callie said softly, setting her coffee mug down and fingering the label.

This got the second woman's attention, as she lifter her head so she could attempt to read Callie's direction.

"Ok." She said. Preparing for what she was certain to be the end of this… thing, she and Callie shared.

"I think you are great. You're someone that means a great deal to me, but—"

"But? But what Callie?" Ashley begged Callie to get on with it. The suspense was driving her insane already.

"But things just aren't working out. The not hearing from you, worrying, stressing, the unknown… it doesn't sit well with me. I am not the type that sits around waiting on someone to decide if they want to be in a relationship or not. Because in my opinion, if you want to be in a relationship… like you really want to make a commitment to one person, then you don't disappear off the radar—"

"Wait! I told you what happ—"

"No! I know what you told me. The 'my friends took my cell phone' excuse has been done. Lots of times. But you're an adult, so allowing them to take your phone is an invalid excuse in my book."

"So, get down to it Callie. Are you honestly going to sit here and let me take all of the blame for our relationship coming to an end, or are you going to admit that a certain blonde hair, blue eyed someone have the reins to your attention. I may have been drunk last night, but I wasn't blind. When she said she was going to call a cab, you looked like someone ran over your puppy. And I didn't miss the same look in her eyes. So just is up front with me Callie. I do deserve that much from you."

Callie wasn't sure what to say. She knew that everything that Ashley had said was completely true. But she also knew that she could not admit to something that would most certainly be spread around the hospital faster than a virus. She turned towards Ashley and squared her shoulders.

"Ashley. There is nothing going on between Arizona and myself. I have known her all of one day. She was going thru a break up and I was simply offering her a ride home. We had to come by here to pick up my keys and that was all. She was dating Jo Wilson, and last night we found her and Karev in the middle of a pretty hot and heavy make out. She was really upset. It was a lot on her, and she was in a bad place. But that doesn't change the fact that what is happening between us, is something that has to happen. We aren't going anywhere and you know that. You are amazing. And I really like you, but I can't really see a future with us. That is the bottom line. And please… I want to do this civilly. I don't want us to avoid each other at work, or cause trouble for one another. I know that being friends is a stretch, but we can at least be civil."

"You want to be buddies? Act like everything is just fine and dandy? Seriously? You're a hot shot doctor. Graduated top of your class. I really thought you were smarter than that…" By this point Ashley was pretty angry. She wasn't sure when she had begun pacing the room, but she had. She reached over to the counter and picked up her purse before walking towards the door. With her hand on the doorknob, she paused for a moment as if she was going to say something else but instead, she opened the door and shut it behind her.

Callie let out a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair. She hadn't expected the break up to go easily, but she hadn't been prepared for that conversation either. Ashley had seemed as if she was just in this for the 'fun' of it. She never gave Callie the impression that she wanted anything serious. They never said 'I love you' or even come close to discussing living together. So the anger that Ashley had shown really threw Callie for a loop. Glancing over at the time she jumped up. She realized that she still had another serious conversation to have this morning and it was one that she actually wanted to have. She knew that she didn't have any obligation to tell Arizona about her so called girlfriend, but then why did she feel guilty? She shook her head and rushed into her bedroom to finish getting ready. She was dressed and out the door in no time and was speed walking down the sidewalk towards the café she had literally ran into Arizona at.

Walking into the coffee shop/bakery Callie shook off her umbrella and wrapped it up before looking up to see if she could find the blonde that she was beyond anxious to see. But disappointment quickly consumed her as she looked around the entire establishment and found no sign of the blonde. She pulled out her cell phone and double checked the time, seeing that it was indeed the time they had agreed to meet. Arizona had changed her mind and honestly Callie couldn't blame her. She thought about walking back home, forgetting that any of this had ever happened, but instead she ordered her coffee and a bagel to go before reopening her umbrella and walking towards the park. The same park she went to across from work that gave her plenty of relaxation and peace when she needed to reflect and right now….. that's what she needed. She found an empty bench and sat down. Opening the bag she pulled out her bagel and took a bite. She heard her phone ringing from inside her jacket; she fumbled to pull it out. When she saw the number on the screen, she had a silent debate with herself weather to answer it or not. Going with yes, she slid her finger across the screen and pulled the phone up to her ear.

"Hello?" She said, her mouth quite full of bagel causing her to have a muffled voice. With no answer, she tried again, swallowing the bagel and clearing her throat. "Hello?"

"So I was going to text you. But then I thought…. That's so impersonal. And a phone call is so much better when you want to explain why you are an epic ass for missing the first date with an incredible woman. When you tell them that you are a huge trauma junkie and when you get paged in during the middle of the night, you jump and run." Arizona said in one giant ramble. Callie couldn't help but to chuckle. She thought all of Arizona's rambling was beyond cute.

After Arizona took a breath, the line was silent. Callie knowing that her silence was making the blonde more nervous and she smiled to herself, knowing exactly how she was punishing her. Finally, deciding that the incredibly cute woman had suffered enough, Callie spoke. "Well, I was at the coffee shop and I was really upset that I was stood up. But I had no idea that I had been stood up for a first date. What makes you think it was a date Miss. Robbins?" Callie said with a raised eyebrow. One that Arizona couldn't see, but could picture.

"I knew that you were going to end whatever that was that you had going on at your apartment last night. And then we would be on our date." Arizona said confidently. She moved towards the catwalk of the hospital and looked down towards the park, her eyes going wide as her grin spread from ear to ear when she spotted Callie sitting on one of the benches. She ran towards the coffee cart at a full sprint. She had a plan, but she needed to act fast. "Dr. Torres… do you think it would be possible to get another chance at a date?"

"I do not think you deserve a second chance. I am sitting on a bench, in the rain, holding an umbrella in one hand and a phone in the other. And had we been on our date, I would be sitting inside a warm bakery, talking to the hottest blonde I have ever seen."

Arizona moved the phone away from her head and covered the receiver while ordering 4 different beverages. Putting it back up to her head, she continued. "Incredibly hot, huh? Well you are definitely not hard on the eyes. So since I'm hot… and you're oh so very hot, it only makes sense that we go on a date. We owe it to each other to have a date. And besides, I am awesome at dates. It would be worth your while to accept my offer." Arizona was merely 25 feet away from Callie as she spoke. She finally walked close enough and leaned over to whisper into the doctor's ear. "You were wrong. I am not the hottest woman in the world, because that title has already been taken. By you…." Arizona said while handing Callie the coffee. "Peace offering?" She added with a dimpled smile.

"Well, what makes you think I want to accept your apologetic coffee?" Callie played, fully knowing that she would never be able to resist this woman. Part of her felt all warm and fuzzy about that fact, but the other part of her felt a touch of fear. Fear of exactly how bad she could end up being hurt over just how much she liked her already. _One evening, one conversation and you're already all goo goo over this woman. Great job Callie. _"I can't force you to accept my guilt coffee, but I can hope, right?" Callie squinted her eyes at the blonde, pretending to be unsure of what to do before finally accepting the cup and thanking her. Arizona stood there, eyeing the empty spot next to the other woman before Callie finally snapped. "Oh, I'm sorry. Please, sit." She gestured next to her before Arizona sat down.

"So, about last night." She began. "No. Really. You don't owe me any explanations. We just met. Whatever you had going on between your girlfriend and yourself is none of my business." Arizona said, forming a perfect 'O' with her lips and blowing into the cup of piping hot coffee before taking a careful sip. "Ex." Callie said before too taking a pull from her cup. "Excuse me?" Arizona asked. She was positive of what Callie had just said, but it sounded too good to be true, and to be honest, she just wanted to hear the words once more. "I said Ex. My ex-girlfriend. As in no longer my girlfriend kind of ex." Arizona heard what she wanted to hear, but quickly felt guilty. "Oh God, I'm so sorry if me being there last night made any—""No, you didn't do anything to change our relationship status. The problem was already there before you and I even met. Because if the problem hadn't have been there, then you and I wouldn't have met. Well I'm sure we would have met eventually, working in the same hospital and all, but we wouldn't have met last night. And if I'm being honest, I'm happy that I met you last night."

"I'm glad that I met you last night too. But would you mind too much if I ask you what happened? I mean, you totally don't have to answer that, but curiosity…." Arizona asked, hoping that she didn't just cross some imaginary line. "That's a long story actually. One that starts before Ashley and I even started." Arizona reached over, placing a hand on Callie's, causing the dark eyes to look up and meet her blue. "Well, how about we have dinner and you can tell me all about it." Callie felt herself smile a genuine smile. One that made her face feel as if it had just betrayed itself considering she hadn't done it in longer than she could remember. "I'd like that more than you know." Arizona mirrored Callie, and asked, "How about tonight? I can cook. My place? 7 o'clock?" Callie couldn't even force words out of her mouth. Instead just shook her head yes. Her pager breaking the staring contest that the two had been engaging in. "Oh shoot. I have to go. I'm supposed to do a consult today, but after that I'm free. Here's my number, just text me with your address and I'll stop and grab a bottle of wine on my way. Any preference?" She asked. "Either is fine with me." The two women stood, and started walking towards the hospital together, Arizona to return to work, and Callie to do her consult. But before they walked inside, Arizona stopped Callie, pulling her by the wrist. "There is one thing that I do have to know though. And I can't wait until tonight to find out the answer." The blonde said, Callie tilting her head to the side silently asking what it could be. "What that kiss would have been like last night, had we not been interrupted. So, what would you say if I—"Arizona didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she leaned in 80% of the way and Callie quickly met her the remaining 20 and their eyes went from locked, to staring at the others lips. Closing their eyes, their lips finally brushing against one another's. In that moment, both women knew that this was a kiss unlike any they had ever shared with another person. And it was something they both wanted more of.


End file.
